Learning on the fly
Colton Radford is undergoing some intense on-the-job training with the Fort Erie Meteors.
The 16-year-old rookie forward joined the Meteors this season after being selected by the Erie Otters in the sixth round (112th overall) of the 2024 Ontario Hockey League draft and has more than held his own as he learns the ropes.
The native of Huron-Perth has six goals and 12 points in 24 games and has worked his way into a more prominent role of late.
“He does it all,” Meteors assistant coach Anthony Passero said. “He’s a top-six left-winger and then we have him on the power play and we use him on the PK (penalty kill) sporadically. We’re trying not to overload him too much, but from where he started in August to where his role has gotten now, I can only see it going further up and his ceiling is growing.”
Passero said the next bridge for Radford to cross is a consistent approach every shift.
“We’re just trying to make sure that he is doing it the right way all the time,” Passero said. “As kids, these habits creep in and I don’t think he’s letting it happen so we’ll just make sure we’re still easing him into it as we get into the second half.”
Passero said former Meteor Liam Beamish, who is now with the Sarnia Sting, is a good example of how a consistent approach shift in and shift out can lead to success.
“Liam Beamish committed to Penn State out of Junior B because he literally did it right every single shift,” Passero said. “We’re just trying to instil that in all our guys, not just the 16-year-olds, but if we can start at that kind of grass-roots level with a 16-year-old and bring him up doing it the right way, then the sky’s the limit for him.
“You’ve got to try to not hold them to that standard, because not every kid develops the same way. I think it took him a little bit to get his feet under him, but as it gets going you can tell he was drafted for a reason. He can play at this level.”
Passero said it is vital the coaching staff don’t back off from the message.
“It’s kind of like having a puppy and you’re making sure that they’re always doing the right things,” he said. “You’re not berating them with things and you’re not putting them down, but they just have to know it’s done right every single shift and that’s so hard to get at this level even with 20-year-olds.”
Radford admits the jump to midget from junior has been a formidable one.
“It’s definitely different playing against, you know, 20-year-olds,” he said. “I was just playing against guys my own age, but Nik (coach/general manager Passero) and Anthony have really made the jump pretty easy. They’re putting me in all situations, giving me as much ice time as possible, and I think I handled it pretty well, but it’s definitely a big job.”
Radford said he is also working on rounding out his game.
“Definitely being more of a 200-foot player, more of a defensive role than last year,” Radford said. “This year you don’t have as much time as last year. There’s always a guy there, but definitely being able to play in all situations.”
Radford went to camp with the Otters and came away impressed.
“It’s good hockey,” he said. “It’s an unreal experience. I was there for three, four days, and it’s fast hockey, but it’s something that hopefully I can look forward to in the future.”
Off the ice, Radford has settled into a new school (Greater Fort Erie Secondary) and is enjoying his billet family.
“Everything’s made so easy for me to come here and make the transition,” he said.
The Meteors are coming off a 4-3 overtime loss to LaSalle and a 6-2 defeat at the hands of the Chatham Maroons at the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League Showcase on the weekend.
“I think one thing to take out of that is how hard it is to play in this league and a back-to-back on the road in a showcase is part of the game,” Anthony Passero said. “It’s part of the job, if you want to call it that, and I just don’t think our guys were necessarily ready for that. So it’s going to humble us and we’re going to see in our next five games before Christmas what we’re made of before we get a break and see if we have to make any sort of adjustment.”
The Meteors are home to Hamilton Saturday and in Pelham Sunday afternoon this week.
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